Hyperbole and A Half

Collects autobiographical, illustrated essays and cartoons from the author's popular blog and related new material that humorously and candidly deals with her own idiosyncrasies and battles with depression

From the critics

Community Activity

Comment

I will happily re-read this over and over. Everything Ally Brosh writes is both hilarious and REAL. You will find yourself (at least I did) laughing hysterically while also feeling validated in your experience of life. Also, her descriptions of her dogs are spot-on.

This highly amusing, sometimes laugh aloud hysterical graphic novel is a bit long but oh so funny. Enjoy it in chunks and return to read a new colored section as you have the chance. And any time that section deals with he author's dogs you are in for a delightful treat. I really liked most of this book.

I really enjoyed this book and felt at times both tremendously sad and then the next minute was crying with hysterical laughter. How she explains depression really stuck with me, I do not have depression, but so many friends I know suffer from it and her explanation really was eye opening.

This is a hilarious memoir in graphic novel form. While Brosh’s artistic technique may seem like a child’s doodling, her witty, offbeat, and self-deprecating tone delivers a level of humor I haven’t experienced in a graphic novel before. I frequently found myself laughing out loud. I especially loved any chapters that featured her lovable "simple dog" and her unruly "helper dog".

Summary

Yet another book based on an award-winning blog, Hyperbole and a Half is everything the title describes, wrapped up in a hilariously deranged little package of kindergarten-like drawings mashed up with the angst-driven musings of a twenty-something millennial. Not surprisingly, the musings on her 2, 5, 7 and 13 year-old selves are likely to induce fits of helpless laughter in their familiarity. Surprisingly, her musings on her struggles with depression are uncomfortably candid. The intentionally child-like (yet amazingly emotive) drawings and the fact that these chapters are interspersed with the adventures of simple-dog and helper-dog (read: dumb-dog and dumber-dog) actually make the stark message of depression stand out like a beacon. However the guilty-pleasure derived from reading the other chapters – well-intentioned mom getting kids lost in the wilderness, the sheer illogical kiddie challenge of being as obnoxious as possible, the absurd adventure of being attacked by a goose in one’s own living room – these are pure enjoyment, either from an “it’s funny because it’s true” perspective, or “thank gawd there’s someone more messed up than I am” angle. If there’s one criticism I can give this book is that Ms. Brosh left out one her best-known characters, the Alot. But luckily the Alot can be found in perpetuity on the blog itself, hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.ca. For those who still prefer the weight and heft of the printed page, reserve your copy of Hyperbole and a Half at spl.blibliocommons.ca and enjoy a lot, and even learn a bit.